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This work was published before January 1,and The Alexiad in the public domain worldwide because the author died at least years ago. This work is in The Alexiad public domain in the United States because it was The Alexiad published within the United States or the United Nations Headquarters in New York subject to The Alexiad 7 of the United States Headquarters Agreement between and inclusive without a copyright notice. The Alexiad describes the political and military history of the Byzantine Empire during the reign of her fathermaking it one of the most important sources of information on the Byzantium of the Middle Ages. As well as this, within the Alexiad, the First Crusade's interaction with the Byzantine Empire is documented despite being written nearly fifty years after the crusadewhich highlights the conflicting perceptions of the East and West in the early 12th century. This work is a translation and The Alexiad a separate copyright status to the applicable copyright protections of the original content. Public domain Public domain false false. Hidden category: Pages with override author. The Alexiad Page Discussion. Views Read Edit View history. Wikimedia Commons Wikipedia. Alexiad | work by Anna Comnena | Britannica

Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Want to Read saving…. Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Other editions. Enlarge cover. Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Details if other :. Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. Preview — The Alexiad by Anna Comnena. The Alexiad by Anna Comnena The Alexiad. Sewter Introduction. It is The Alexiad an important source of information on the Byzantine war with the Normans, and the First Crusade, in which Alexius participated. While the Byzantines were allied to the Crusaders, they were none t 'The shining The Alexiad of the world, the great Alexius' Anna Comnena wrote The Alexiad as an account of the reign of her father, the Byzantine Emperor Alexius I. While the Byzantines were allied to the Crusaders, they were none the less critical of their behaviour and Anna's book offers a startlingly different perspective from that of Western historians. Her character sketches are shrewd and forthright - from the Norman invader The Alexiad Guiscard 'nourished by mainfold Evil' and his son Bohemond 'like a streaking thunderbolt' The Alexiad Pope Gregory VII 'unworthy of a high priest'. The Alexiad is a vivid and dramatic narrative, which The Alexiad as much about the character of its intelligent and dynamic author as it does The Alexiad the fascinating period through which she lived. Sewter's translation captures all the strength and immediacy of the original and is complemented by an introduction that examines Anna's life and times. This edition also includes maps, appendices, genealogical tables, a bibliography and indexes of events and names. Get A Copy. Paperbackpages. Published December 20th The Alexiad Penguin Classics first published More Details Original Title. Other Editions Friend Reviews. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about The Alexiadplease sign up. See 1 question about The Alexiad…. Lists with This Book. Community Reviews. Showing Average rating 4. Rating details. More filters. Sort order. Start your review of The Alexiad. I've been The Alexiad a lot about reviewing lately. For a time I considered stopping entirely. It sometimes gets very stressful to read a book while searching for quotes to use and things to mention, not being able to actually The Alexiad the book because too much time and focus goes towards planning the eventual review. Which is bloody The Alexiad. It's sad The Alexiad say this, but I've been putting too much energy into reviewing. It should only be done for fun, and that's what I'm going to do from now on. Which is I've been thinking a lot about reviewing lately. Which The Alexiad why I'm going to go a lot more easy when reviewing the books The Alexiad reading nowadays. From now on, I will The Alexiad be The Alexiad reviews for the books I actually feel like reviewing. And instead I'll be spending some time writing the best review I've ever written for a book as remarkably unknown as this one. Because it's special to me. But most of all because I want to. Life's too short for doing too many things we don't enjoy. View all 39 comments. Jan 31, Jan-Maat added it Shelves: autobiography-memoir12th-centurybiographicalread-in-translationbyzantine. For me the most interesting thing about Anna Comena's biography of her father is how much hard work The Alexiad was to be a Byzantine Emperor. There seem to be constant hordes of enemies, external and internal whack a mole rebellions The Alexiad, while every soldier to fight in their support needs to scrapped from the bottom of the barrel. Her narrative is indispensable for those interested in the 1st crusade and is ironically, considering her lack of love for the westerners, the most widely available primary source For me the most interesting thing about Anna Comena's biography of her father is how much hard work it was to be a Byzantine Emperor. Her narrative is indispensable The Alexiad those interested in the 1st crusade and is ironically, considering her lack of love for the westerners, the most widely available primary source. Comena does have the The Alexiad habit of referring to western Europeans as Kelts and her description of them is strongly reminiscent of earlier Roman and Greek descriptions of the celtsEgyptians as Babylonians and Hagarines for Muslims it was good style apparently to be as archaic, if not as obscure as possible in your nomenclature for the educated writer. At that same time this implies that nothing has ever changed the Roman Empire still does battle with the Celts and the Babylonians just as it did a thousand years and more! Everything is eternal and unchanging the narrative implies, thus gracefully covering over the fact that the Commene family had only recently seized the The Alexiad throne through marriage and their right to rule was not universally taken seriously hence the rebellions. There are some insights and stories - like The Alexiad one of her mother in labour - that presumably a man of the household would not have access to, but because of the focus The Alexiad her father and on him as a successful and able politician there is not as much about the role of the women in the political life of the Empire or about the decision making process that one might have liked from such a well placed witness. And that is the great disappointment of her book, here for the only The Alexiad we get the voice and opinion of a woman of the Imperial household, only she is not very interested in talking about being a woman in the Imperial household, her father - unlike her younger brother who got to The Alexiad the next Emperor - is presented as an exemplary figure so she also keeps us at arms length from the doubts and political infighting behind the decision making. Still there is nothing else quite like it. View all 5 comments. Aug 10, Curt Lorde rated it it was amazing. Gibbons, I believe, suffered from an elitism that all good things came from the pagan Romans. The Alexiad Eastern religion was a part of their downfall. A little town called Constantinople broke two massive invasions that most definitely would The Alexiad changed history, and not to the liking of Gibbons, or The Alexiad, for that matter. The men and women who both fought for,and,many a time,each other for the throne of this 'ghost of Rome' were some fascinating folk. Alexius The Alexiad Comnenus is a perfect example. His The Alexiad Anna wrote his biography. It is a The Alexiad of an reeling empire. One beset by aggressive Seljuk Turks The Alexiad defeated a former emperor in at Manzikert The Alexiad what is now Armenia,in the east, and some western adventurer knights, led by the Normans, descendants of the Vikings, who had swept up Sicily,parts of southern Italy, and The Alexiad on the remnants Of the Empire like raw meat to a wolf. Okay got that out. Alexius, to the surprise of many, would hold the Empire together. Though unable to drive the Turks completely away from its former territory, it would be nearly four hundred years before Byzantium died. He would see off the Normans. And the barbarian horseman of the steppes raiding south across the Danube. Anna loved and admired her father, though she wished he had chosen her and her husband as successors, instead of her brother who she tried to usurp. Family affairs, the Empire is full of such stories. Alexius also steered the First Crusade through his realm. Anna The Alexiad an excellent description of their leaders, in particular, the mighty Norman, Bohemund. I can picture the young Anna The Alexiad from the women's nook at the mailed badass from the semi civilized West and going "Damn! He's Fine! The Alexiad, the writing of Ammianus Marcellinus, and Tacitus will give you three different views of the Roman Empire at three different stages in its life. Shelves: greek-and-romaneuropean-history. Anyone wishing to have more than an introductory knowledge of either the Crusades or Byzantium ought to read Anna Comnena's account known as the "Alexiad" of the reign her father from to AD on the Eastern Roman Empire. It is in effect the foundation document upon which all subsequent historians have relied for either the First Crusade or for the history of Byzantium. It must be understood that history for the pre-modern era is essentially literary criticism. The historian of The Alexiad modern era bases his or her account on archival sources. The historian of antiquity or the middle ages a consults a handful of contemporary chronicles and then presents his or her interpretation. Thus after reading the work of a modern historian on the era, the logical thing to do is to go to the horse's mouth and read Comnena's "Alexiad". She is certainly as intelligent as any modern historian. Moreover, in the E. Sewter translation of Penguin, she also writes as well. Possibly due to her unnatural language or the fact that Comnena was a woman, many modern historians have sneered at her. All have, however, accepted The Alexiad thesis that the Comnenian Dynasty of Byzantium a. Alexiad - Wikipedia

The crusaders who arrived from Northern Europe were filled with religious passion and the desire to acquire kingdoms for themselves; but they had scant understanding of the people they were supposed to be assisting. Since he could not bear to have failed in his aim, he decided to begin the same voyage over again. In fact he succeeded. As if he had made a divine The Alexiad heard in the heart of each person, Celts from all over assembled, arriving one after the The Alexiad with their arms, horses, and the rest of their military equipment. These men were so passionately enthusiastic they filled all the roads. These Celtic soldiers were accompanied by a multitude of unarmed people, more numerous than The Alexiad of sand or stars, carrying palm branches 5 and crosses over their shoulders: women and children who had left their countries. To see them one would have thought they were streams which flowed together from everywhere—from Dacia mostly, they headed toward us with their entire army. The arrival of so many people was preceded by locusts which spared the wheat but despoiled and devoured the vines. It was truly the sign such as the prophets of that time had predicted, that this formidable Celtic army, when it arrived, would not intervene in Christian affairs, but would crush in a terrible manner the barbaric Ishmaelites 6 who are slaves of drunkenness, of wine and of Dionysus. This is also the reason that the Ishmaelites adore in their worship Astarte and Ashtaroth, and that they make so much of an image of a star and the golden statue of Chobar. This is how the prophets interpreted The Alexiad symbolism of the wheat and the vines. But enough about prophets; these signs also accompanied the approach of the barbarians, and intelligent people could expect something novel. In fact the arrival of such a multitude did not take place at the same moment, nor by the same road. In fact, how could such masses setting out from different countries have all assembled to cross from Italy? Each army was preceded by a cloud of locusts, as I said above; so everyone having experienced this several times, knew that this phenomenon portended the arrival of French troops. When these groups began crossing the Straits of Lombardy, the emperor summoned some of the leaders of the Roman troops and sent them The Alexiad the region around Dyrrachium and Avlona, with orders that the travelers who The Alexiad crossed over should be received kindly and provided all along their route with abundant provisions from all regions; and instructions to observe them discretely, constantly observing them, so that if they The Alexiad observed making raids or pillaging neighboring regions, they should be repelled by light The Alexiad. These officers were aided by interpreters who knew the Latin language and could settle the conflicts which might arise. I would like to give a clearer and more detailed account of this matter. Inspired by word of the preaching which circulated everywhere, Godefroi 10 was the first to sell his lands and set out on the road. He was a The Alexiad rich man, extremely proud of his noble birth, his courage, and the glory of his ancestry, for every Celt wanted to surpass all The Alexiad. There arose a movement including both men and women such as no one could remember having ever seen before: the simplest people were truly motivated by their desire to worship at the sepulcher of the The Alexiad and to visit the holy places; but villainous men like Bohemond and his like had an ulterior motive, and the hope The Alexiad perhaps they might seize the imperial city itself 11 on the way since The Alexiad had The Alexiad on this opportunity for profit. Bohemond confused the minds of many noble warriors because he cherished an old grudge against the emperor. Meanwhile, Peter, after having preached as I have described above, crossed the Strait of Lombardy before any of them with 80, infantrymen andhorsemen, and The Alexiad at the imperial palace after having crossed through Hungary. Informed of all that Peter had had to endure previously at the hands of the The Alexiad, the emperor advised him to wait for the arrival of the other counts; but he, refusing to listen to him, feeling his company strong in numbers, crossed the strait and set up camp near a small village called Helenopolis. The Alexiad followed him: about 10, of them. They broke off from the rest of the army and began pillaging The Alexiad region around Nicaea, conducting themselves with extreme cruelty toward all. Suckling infants, for example, were either mutilated or speared on spits and roasted The Alexiad the fire. As for older people, they inflicted all manner of tortures on them. When the inhabitants of the city heard these things, The Alexiad opened the gates and made a sortie against the Normans. A violent combat followed; but in the face of the belligerent ferocity of the Normans the native troops retreated into the citadel. The attackers returned to Helenopolis The Alexiad all their booty. But a dispute arose between them and those who had not gone with them on the raid, The Alexiad often happens in such cases; envy inflamed those who had remained behind and there followed between the two groups a quarrel which ended by the audacious Normans making a new separate sortie and taking Xerigordon in a single assault. The sultan reacted to these events by sending Elkhanes against them with a substantial force. As soon as he arrived, he recaptured Xerigordon. As for the Normans, he put many to the The Alexiad and took the rest prisoner while planning a surprise assault on the others who had remained behind with Peter. He set up ambushes in appropriate spots where those who were traveling toward Nicaea would be fallen upon and massacred. This news spread among those with Peter and threw them into a terrible confusion; for as soon as they heard of dividing riches, they rushed off in disorder along the road to Nicaea, almost entirely forgetting the military experience and discipline proper to fighting men. Since they did march in ranks or troops, they fell into a Turkish ambush near Drakon and were wretchedly massacred. So many Celts and Normans were victims of the Ishmaelite sword that The Alexiad the bodies of the slaughtered warriors which were scattered about were collected, they were piled—not in a huge pile, nor even a mound, or a hill—but into a high mountain of considerable dimensions, so great was the mass of bones. Later men belonging to the same race as the massacred men built walls like those of the city, filling the holes between the stones with bones instead of mortar, and thus made The Alexiad city into their tomb. The fortified place exists still today, surrounded by a wall made of stones and bones mixed together. When all these had been slain by the sword, Peter alone with a few others returned to Helenopolis and entered it. The Turks, who The Alexiad to seize the city, raised new ambushes. But when the emperor learned all of this and had verified the The Alexiad of this appalling massacre, he realized how tragic it would have been if Peter had also been taken prisoner. So he sent for Constantine Euphorbenos Katakalon, whom I have mentioned often above, and had him assemble a large body of warships and sent them to rescue those on the other side of the strait. As soon as the Turks saw these troops arrive, they fled. Constantine, without losing a moment, gathered Peter and his few companions and led them safe and sound to the emperor. Selling their lands, they pretended The Alexiad go off to war against the Turks to free the Holy Sepulcher. It is difficult to know what caused Anna to judge the Muslims as drunkards, for Islam strictly forbids its followers The Alexiad drink wine. The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of The Alexiad editor-in-chief: Paul Brians Department of English Washington State University Pullman This is just a sample of Reading About The Alexiad World, Volume 1. If, after examining the table of contents of the complete volume, you are interested in considering it for use at your The Alexiad campus, please contact Paul Brians. According to Anna, what were the main faults of the crusaders? The reader was created for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief: Paul Brians Department of English Washington State University Pullman This is just a sample of The Alexiad About the World, Volume 1. The reader was The Alexiad for use in the World Civilization course at Washington State University, but material on this page may be used for educational purposes by permission of the editor-in-chief:.